Bluegrass music is a genre of American roots music that developed in the 1940s in the Appalachian region of the United States . The genre derives its name from the band Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys . Like mainstream country music , it largely developed out of old-time music , though in contrast to country, it is traditionally played exclusively on acoustic instruments and also kept its roots in traditional English, Scottish and Irish ballads and dance tunes , as well as incorporating blues and jazz . It was further developed by musicians who played with Monroe, including 5-string banjo player Earl Scruggs and guitarist Lester Flatt . Bill Monroe once described bluegrass music as, "It's a part of Methodist , Holiness and Baptist traditions. It's blues and jazz, and it has a high lonesome sound."
118-716: The Mission Mountain Wood Band , abbreviated M2WB , is an American bluegrass and country rock band formed in Missoula, Montana , US in 1971. They were noted for their vocal harmonies, multi-instrumental talent, and charismatic stage presence, particularly at Woodstock style regional concerts of the era such as the University of Montana 's Aber Day Kegger. They spent time in New York City to further build their career, appeared on national television and toured 47 of
236-555: A band they called House of Quist and Johnson with the Christian Johnson Project On August 12, 2017 the band performed another reunion concert in Polson, a tribute to the now-defunct Aber Day Kegger. Bluegrass music Bluegrass features acoustic stringed instruments and emphasizes the off-beat . The off-beat can be "driven" (played close to the previous bass note) or "swung" (played farther from
354-631: A decade between Irish immigrants and Black people for work. Rioters burned the Colored Orphan Asylum to the ground. At least 120 people were killed. Eleven Black men were lynched over five days, and the riots forced hundreds of Blacks to flee. The Black population in Manhattan fell below 10,000 by 1865. The White working class had established dominance. It was one of the worst incidents of civil unrest in American history . In 1886,
472-553: A distinct musical form developed from elements of old-time music and traditional music in the Appalachian region of the United States . The Appalachian region was where many Scottish American immigrants settled, bringing with them the musical traditions of their homelands. Hence the sounds of jigs and reels , especially as played on the fiddle, were innate to the developing style. Black musicians, meanwhile, brought
590-647: A fiddle. Many older bluegrass songs come directly from the British Isles . Several Appalachian bluegrass ballads, such as " Pretty Saro ", " Pretty Polly ", " Cuckoo Bird ", and " House Carpenter ", come from England and preserve the English ballad tradition both melodically and lyrically. Some bluegrass fiddle songs popular in Appalachia, such as "Leather Britches" and "Soldier's Joy", have Scottish roots. The dance tune " Cumberland Gap " may be derived from
708-413: A genre within the post-war country/western-music industry, a period of time characterized now as the golden era or wellspring of "traditional bluegrass". From its earliest days, bluegrass has been recorded and performed by professional and amateur musicians alike. Although amateur bluegrass musicians and trends such as "parking-lot picking" are too important to be ignored, it is touring musicians who have set
826-495: A music professor at the university, and all band members were proficient on at least two instruments. They took their band name from the nearby Mission Range of mountains. Their public debut was in Bozeman, Montana in 1971 as the opening act for Rare Earth . Their band logo was designed by Missoula artist Monte Dolack . The band was influenced by folk and traditional country music traditions as well as contemporary bands of
944-523: A part of the colony of New York . It became a center of slavery , with 42% of households enslaving Africans by 1730. Most were domestic slaves ; others were hired out as labor. Slavery became integrally tied to New York's economy through the labor of slaves throughout the port, and the banking and shipping industries trading with the American South . During construction in Foley Square in
1062-518: A recommended LP, and said of the band, "They seem well-adapted to today's modern country sound." The band personnel remained in flux, with new musicians joining the band as others left. New musicians added to the band's lineup included Grady Whitfield of Utah, Alan Larson and Cliff Tipton, both from Oklahoma. Other albums included "Wake me When the sun Goes Down" (1984) and posthumous albums: "A Long Talk With Myself" (1987) and "'til The Next Time......." (1987). Quist left The Montana Band in 1984, starting
1180-519: A reputation as a despotic leader. He instituted regulations on liquor sales, attempted to assert control over the Dutch Reformed Church , and blocked other religious groups from establishing houses of worship. In 1664, unable to summon any significant resistance, Stuyvesant surrendered New Amsterdam to English troops, led by Colonel Richard Nicolls , without bloodshed. The terms of the surrender permitted Dutch residents to remain in
1298-531: A result of Sandy, and the economic losses in New York City were estimated to be roughly $ 19 billion. The disaster spawned long-term efforts towards infrastructural projects to counter climate change and rising seas, with $ 15 billion in federal funding received through 2022 towards those resiliency efforts. In March 2020, the first case of COVID-19 in the city was confirmed. With its population density and its extensive exposure to global travelers,
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#17327985722681416-575: A solo career backed by his own band, Great Northern. The group won the country division of the Willie Nelson Music Invitational in 1986. On July 4, 1987, remaining M2WB members Terry Robinson and Kurt Bergeron, along with band manager Tom Sawan, sound manager Dale Anderson, and then-current band members Cliff Tipton, Alan Larson, and Grady Whitfield, died when the twin-engine Beechcraft Model 18 they were flying in crashed near Lakeside, Montana . The pilot attempted to "buzz"
1534-485: A solo on top of the guitar during breaks , guitarists may also provide these solos on occasion. The instrument originates from eighteenth century Spain, but there were no American-made models until the C.F. Martin Company started to manufacture them in the 1830s. The guitar is now most commonly played with a style referred to as flatpicking , unlike the style of early bluegrass guitarists such as Lester Flatt , who used
1652-485: A speech denying the request, which was paraphrased on the front page of the New York Daily News as "FORD TO CITY: DROP DEAD." The Municipal Assistance Corporation was formed and granted oversight authority over the city's finances. While a resurgence in the financial industry greatly improved the city's economic health in the 1980s, New York's crime rate continued to increase through that decade and into
1770-551: A third album after the band revamped as ‘’Montana’’, released a compilation of their older work in 2005, and put out two albums with new content in 2011 and 2014. Personnel changes resulting from the departure of several original band members resulted in Quist, Robinson, Reichenberg, and Bergeron reforming the group as The Montana Band in 1981. They had some national success and, described as "well-adapted to today's modern country sound," were being favorably compared to major groups of
1888-412: A thumb pick and finger pick . Bassists almost always play pizzicato , occasionally adopting the "slap-style" to accentuate the beat. A bluegrass bass line is generally a rhythmic alternation between the root and fifth of each chord , with occasional walking bass excursions. Instrumentation has been a continuing topic of debate. Traditional bluegrass performers believe the "correct" instrumentation
2006-487: A touring band rather than a studio group, at their peak they played 350 shows in a year. The M2WB developed a reputation for their complex use of four-part vocal harmonies , the multi-instrumentality of their members, tight performances with "planned spontaneity," and extended concert jams, that were compared to those of the Grateful Dead. They played extensively on the college circuit, and were an annual mainstay of
2124-466: A worldwide audience as a result of its frequent use in the movie "Bonnie and Clyde". But the functionally similar old-time music genre was long-established and widely recorded in the period of the film's events and later CD was released. Ralph Stanley commented about the origins of the genre and its name. Oh, (Monroe) was the first. But it wasn't called bluegrass back then. It was just called old-time mountain hillbilly music. When they started doing
2242-483: Is a global center of finance and commerce , culture , technology , entertainment and media , academics and scientific output , the arts and fashion , and, as home to the headquarters of the United Nations , international diplomacy . With an estimated population in 2023 of 8,258,035 distributed over 300.46 square miles (778.2 km ), the city is the most densely populated major city in
2360-662: Is a common name given in America for the grass of the Poa genus, the most famous being Kentucky bluegrass . A large region in central Kentucky is sometimes called the Bluegrass region (although this region is west of the hills of Kentucky). Exactly when the word "bluegrass" was adopted is not certain, but is believed to be in the late 1950s. It was derived from the name of the seminal Blue Grass Boys band, formed in 1939 with Bill Monroe as its leader. Due to this lineage, Bill Monroe
2478-467: Is an established safe haven for global investors. As of 2023 , New York City is the most expensive city in the world for expatriates and has by a wide margin the highest U.S. city residential rents; and Fifth Avenue is the most expensive shopping street in the world. New York City is home by a significant margin to the highest number of billionaires , individuals of ultra-high net worth (greater than US$ 30 million), and millionaires of any city in
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#17327985722682596-706: Is frequently referred to as the "father of bluegrass". The bluegrass style of music dates from the mid-1940s. In 1948, the Stanley Brothers recorded the traditional song " Molly and Tenbrooks " in the Blue Grass Boys' style, arguably the point in time that bluegrass emerged as a distinct musical form. Monroe's 1946 to 1948 band, which featured guitarist Lester Flatt , banjoist Earl Scruggs , fiddler Chubby Wise and bassist Howard Watts (also known as "Cedric Rainwater") – sometimes called "the original bluegrass band" – created
2714-451: Is in contrast to old-time music , where all instrumentalists play the melody together, or one instrument carries the lead throughout while the others provide accompaniment. Breakdowns are often characterized by rapid tempos and unusual instrumental dexterity, and sometimes by complex chord changes . The violin (also known as the fiddle ), five-string banjo , guitar , mandolin , and upright bass ( string bass ) are often joined by
2832-467: Is that used by Bill Monroe's band, the Blue Grass Boys (guitar, mandolin, fiddle, banjo, and bass). Departures from the traditional instrumentation have included dobro, accordion , harmonica , piano , autoharp , drums , electric guitar , and electric versions of other common bluegrass instruments, resulting in what has been referred to as "new grass." Despite this debate, even Monroe himself
2950-615: Is the most populous city in the United States , located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors . The city comprises five boroughs , each coextensive with a respective county . The city is the geographical and demographic center of both the Northeast megalopolis and the New York metropolitan area , the largest metropolitan area in the U.S. by both population and urban area . New York
3068-866: The Atlantic port to the agricultural markets and commodities of the North American interior via the Hudson River and the Great Lakes . Local politics became dominated by Tammany Hall , a political machine supported by Irish and German immigrants . In 1831, New York University was founded. Several prominent American literary figures lived in New York during the 1830s and 1840s, including William Cullen Bryant , Washington Irving , Herman Melville , Rufus Wilmot Griswold , John Keese , Nathaniel Parker Willis , and Edgar Allan Poe . Members of
3186-909: The Crown , with as many as 10,000 escaped slaves crowded into the city during the British occupation, the largest such community on the continent. When the British forces evacuated New York at the close of the war in 1783, they transported thousands of freedmen for resettlement in Nova Scotia , England, and the Caribbean . The attempt at a peaceful solution to the war took place at the Conference House on Staten Island between American delegates, including Benjamin Franklin , and British general Lord Howe on September 11, 1776. Shortly after
3304-692: The Lake Tahoe area. The appeared on the ABC Cheryl Ladd Special and in other venues, recorded one album, Change in the Weather, in 1981, and were best known for the song, "Shoe's on the Other Foot Tonight," written by Quist. The single was listed as "recommended" by Billboard on October 31, 1981. The album was produced by Randy Bean and released by Waterhouse Records. In December 1981, Billboard Magazine listed it as
3422-742: The New York City Fire Department and 71 law enforcement officers. The area was rebuilt with a new World Trade Center , the National September 11 Memorial and Museum , and other new buildings and infrastructure, including the World Trade Center Transportation Hub , the city's third-largest hub. The new One World Trade Center is the tallest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere and the seventh-tallest building in
3540-615: The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band , Jimmy Buffett , The Allman Brothers Band , Ozark Mountain Daredevils , Bonnie Raitt , and the Charlie Daniels Band . While touring, they taped a significant number of performances on local and regional television programs from Miami to Seattle, promoting their concerts, which often sold out, and in 1979 they appeared on National Television on the show Hee Haw . Primarily
3658-1000: The Northwest Passage to the Orient for the Dutch East India Company . He sailed up what the Dutch called North River (now the Hudson River), named first by Hudson as the Mauritius after Maurice, Prince of Orange . Hudson claimed the region for the Dutch East India Company. In 1614, the area between Cape Cod and Delaware Bay was claimed by the Netherlands and called Nieuw-Nederland (' New Netherland '). The first non–Native American inhabitant of what became New York City
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3776-576: The Statue of Liberty , a gift from France , was dedicated in New York Harbor. The statue welcomed 14 million immigrants as they came to the U.S. via Ellis Island by ship in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and is a symbol of the United States and American ideals of liberty and peace. In 1898, the City of New York was formed with the consolidation of Brooklyn (until then a separate city),
3894-709: The Stonewall riots were a series of violent protests by members of the gay community against a police raid that took place in the early morning of June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village . They are widely considered to be the single most important event leading to the gay liberation movement and the modern fight for LGBT rights . Wayne R. Dynes , author of the Encyclopedia of Homosexuality , wrote that drag queens were
4012-933: The Telluride Bluegrass Festival , RockyGrass in Lyons, Colorado, and MerleFest in Wilkesboro, North Carolina began to attract acts from outside the bluegrass tradition, merging the bluegrass community with other popular music scenes across America. Following the death of Jerry Garcia , who began his career playing bluegrass, and the dissolution of the Grateful Dead , the blossoming " jam band " scene that followed in their wake embraced and included many groups that performed progressive bluegrass styles that included extended, exploratory musical improvisation , often called "jamgrass." This style began to define many such acts whose popularity has grown into
4130-454: The University of Montana 's "Jubileers", an audition-only singing group. They soon recruited other University of Montana (UM) students, starting with guitarist and Kalispell native Terry Robinson as lead vocalist. They performed as an acoustic three-piece group before adding two more UM students originally from Billings : Christian Johnson on guitar, mandolin and fiddle , and drummer Greg Reichenberg. They were mentored by Joseph Musselman ,
4248-426: The key of G , and a I-IV-V chord pattern is common. In traditional bluegrass, instrumental breaks are typically short and played between sections of a song, conventionally originating as a variation on the song's melody. Also common are breakdowns, an instrumental form that features a series of breaks, each played by a different instrument. Particularly since the 1990s, a number of younger groups have attempted to revive
4366-541: The resonator guitar (also referred to as a Dobro ) and (occasionally) harmonica or Jew's harp . This instrumentation originated in rural dance bands and is the basis on which the earliest bluegrass bands were formed. The fiddle, made by Italians and first used in sixteenth century Europe, was one of the first instruments to be brought into America. It became popular due to its small size and versatility. Fiddles are also used in country , classical , cajun , and old time music. Banjos were brought to America through
4484-612: The steamship General Slocum caught fire in the East River , killing 1,021 people. In 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire , the city's worst industrial disaster, killed 146 garment workers and spurred the growth of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union and major improvements in factory safety standards. New York's non-White population was 36,620 in 1890. New York City
4602-484: The 1930s and mid-1940s. However, the term "bluegrass" did not appear formally to describe the music until the late 1950s and did not appear in Music Index until 1965. The first entry in Music Index mentioning "bluegrass music" directed the reader to "see Country Music; Hillbilly Music". Music Index maintained this listing for bluegrass music until 1986. The first time bluegrass music had its own entries in Music Index
4720-552: The 1990s, the African Burying Ground was discovered; the cemetery included 10,000 to 20,000 graves of colonial-era Africans, some enslaved and some free. The 1735 trial and acquittal in Manhattan of John Peter Zenger , who had been accused of seditious libel after criticizing colonial governor William Cosby , helped to establish freedom of the press in North America . In 1754, Columbia University
4838-538: The 19th century, the city was transformed by both commercial and residential development relating to its status as a national and international trading center , as well as by European immigration, respectively. The city adopted the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 , which expanded the city street grid to encompass almost all of Manhattan. The 1825 completion of the Erie Canal through central New York connected
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4956-748: The 21st century, such as Leftover Salmon , The String Cheese Incident , Yonder Mountain String Band , The Infamous Stringdusters , Railroad Earth , Greensky Bluegrass and Billy Strings . In recent years, groups like the Punch Brothers , the Jon Stickley Trio and Nickel Creek have developed a new form of progressive bluegrass which includes highly arranged pieces resembling contemporary classical music played on bluegrass instruments. These bands feature complicated rhythms, chord schemes, and harmonics combined with improvised solos. At
5074-544: The African slave trade. They began receiving attention from white Americans when minstrel shows incorporated the banjo as part of their acts. The " clawhammer ", or two finger style playing, was popular before the Civil War. Now, however, banjo players use mainly the three-finger picking style made popular by banjoists such as Earl Scruggs . Guitars are used primarily for rhythmic purposes. Other instruments may provide
5192-700: The British occupation began, the Great Fire of New York destroyed nearly 500 buildings, about a quarter of the structures in the city, including Trinity Church . In January 1785, the assembly of the Congress of the Confederation made New York City the national capital. New York was the last capital of the U.S. under the Articles of Confederation and the first capital under the Constitution of
5310-530: The Bronx , and Staten Island . Anchored by Wall Street in the Financial District, Manhattan , New York City has been called both the world's premier financial and fintech center and the most economically powerful city in the world. As of 2022 , the New York metropolitan area is the largest metropolitan economy in the world , with a gross metropolitan product of over US$ 2.16 trillion. If
5428-575: The County of New York (which then included parts of the Bronx), the County of Richmond, and the western portion of the County of Queens. The opening of the New York City Subway in 1904, first built as separate private systems, helped bind the new city together. Throughout the first half of the 20th century, the city became a world center for industry, commerce, and communication. In 1904,
5546-603: The Dutch West India Company relinquished its monopoly over the fur trade, leading to growth in the production and trade of food, timber, tobacco, and slaves (particularly with the Dutch West Indies ). In 1647, Peter Stuyvesant began his tenure as the last Director-General of New Netherland. During his tenure, the population of New Netherland grew from 2,000 to 8,000. Stuyvesant has been credited with improving law and order; however, he earned
5664-413: The Dutch colonial Director-General Peter Minuit , as charged by the Dutch West India Company , purchased the island of Manhattan from the Canarsie , a small Lenape band, for "the value of 60 guilders " (about $ 900 in 2018). A frequently told but disproved legend claims that Manhattan was purchased for $ 24 worth of glass beads. Following the purchase, New Amsterdam grew slowly. To attract settlers,
5782-478: The Dutch instituted the patroon system in 1628, whereby wealthy Dutchmen ( patroons , or patrons) who brought 50 colonists to New Netherland would be awarded land, local political autonomy, and rights to participate in the lucrative fur trade. This program had little success. Since 1621, the Dutch West India Company had operated as a monopoly in New Netherland, on authority granted by the Dutch States General . In 1639–1640, in an effort to bolster economic growth,
5900-400: The Mission Mountain Wood Band... was the official band of the state, we were their close cousins." Analyzing their style, Granda said, "they were much better showmen than we were," but noted that the band's penchant for songs with a regional flavor limited their national recognition. In 1977 the band released their first album In Without Knocking , and their cover of " Take a Whiff on Me " was
6018-423: The Missoula Aber Day Kegger, a 1000-keg fundraiser for the University library, added to the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's largest benefit kegger . By 1977, Billboard Magazine noted that the band was viewed as "generally acclaimed to be the top regional band playing Montana," ranking it ahead of four other Pacific Northwest acts. Michael "Supe" Granda of the Ozark Mountain Daredevils stated, "If
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#17327985722686136-420: The Native Americans and epidemics brought on by contact with the Europeans caused sizeable population losses for the Lenape between 1660 and 1670. By 1700, the Lenape population had diminished to 200. New York experienced several yellow fever epidemics in the 18th century, losing ten percent of its population in 1702 alone. In the early 18th century, New York grew in importance as a trading port while as
6254-405: The New York metropolitan area were its own country , it would have the tenth-largest economy in the world . Despite having a 24/7 rapid transit system , New York also leads the world in urban automobile traffic congestion . The city is home to the world's two largest stock exchanges by market capitalization of their listed companies: the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq . New York City
6372-578: The Revolutionary War and escaped slaves, a significant free-Black population gradually developed in Manhattan. The New York Manumission Society worked for abolition and established the African Free School to educate Black children. It was not until 1827 that slavery was completely abolished in the state . Free Blacks struggled with discrimination and interracial abolitionist activism continued. New York City's population jumped from 123,706 in 1820 (10,886 of whom were Black and of which 518 were enslaved) to 312,710 by 1840 (16,358 of whom were Black). Also in
6490-425: The Senate chambers as "Montana's Favorite Sons". The Mission Mountain Wood Band's heyday ran from 1973 to 1981. Once they began touring, Riddle's older brother Dick took over from Musselman as the band's musical coach and manager. The elder Riddle had been in a touring folk band that had obtained a recording contract and put out an album in 1962, so had connections with the east coast music industry. From 1973-1976,
6608-415: The United States . As the U.S. capital, New York City hosted the inauguration of the first President, George Washington , and the first Congress , at Federal Hall on Wall Street . Congress drafted the Bill of Rights there. The Supreme Court held its first organizational sessions in New York in 1790. In 1790, for the first time, New York City surpassed Philadelphia as the nation's largest city. At
6726-436: The United States . As many as 800 languages are spoken in New York City, making it the most linguistically diverse city in the world. In 2021, the city was home to nearly 3.1 million residents born outside the U.S., the largest foreign-born population of any city in the world. New York City traces its origins to Fort Amsterdam and a trading post founded on Manhattan Island by Dutch colonists around 1624. The settlement
6844-416: The United States. New York City has more than double the population of Los Angeles , the nation's second-most populous city. With more than 20.1 million people in its metropolitan statistical area and 23.5 million in its combined statistical area as of 2020, New York City is one of the world's most populous megacities . The city and its metropolitan area are the premier gateway for legal immigration to
6962-432: The area for France and named it Nouvelle Angoulême (New Angoulême ). A Spanish expedition, led by the Portuguese captain Estêvão Gomes sailing for Emperor Charles V , arrived in New York Harbor in January 1525 and charted the mouth of the Hudson River , which he named Río de San Antonio ('Saint Anthony's River'). In 1609, the English explorer Henry Hudson rediscovered New York Harbor while searching for
7080-470: The band relocated to New York City , at times leaving the city to write and have band rehearsals in rural areas of New Jersey. They played in locations such as New York's CBGB ’s and also toured nationally. They were the opening act at the 1973 Hells Angels Pirate Party in New York, sharing the ticket with the Jerry Garcia Band and Bo Diddley , a concert documented in the 1983 film Hell's Angels Forever. They opened for other major acts including Heart ,
7198-426: The band, produced two additional albums in 2011 and 2014. Their fan base and concert experience was compared favorably to that of the Grateful Dead . The band was the subject of a 2009 PBS documentary, Never Long Gone: The Mission Mountain Wood Band Story . The band was formed in 1971 when guitarist and banjo player Rob Quist , from Cut Bank, Montana and bassist Steve Riddle from Libby met as members of
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#17327985722687316-472: The baritone part sung in the normal range of that voice; E.P. Tullock [aka Cousin Jake] normally providing the part, though at times it was handled by Curly Seckler). Bluegrass tunes often take the form of narratives on the everyday lives of the people whence the music came. Aside from laments about loves lost, interpersonal tensions and unwanted changes to the region (e.g., the visible effects of mountaintop coal mining ), bluegrass vocals frequently reference
7434-493: The beginning of the 1990s. By the mid-1990s, crime rates started to drop dramatically due to revised police strategies, improving economic opportunities, gentrification , and new residents, both American transplants and new immigrants from Asia and Latin America. New York City's population exceeded 8 million for the first time in the 2000 United States census ; further records were set in 2010 , and 2020 U.S. censuses. Important new sectors, such as Silicon Alley , emerged in
7552-412: The bluegrass festivals in 1965, everybody got together and wanted to know what to call the show, y'know. It was decided that since Bill was the oldest man, and was from the bluegrass state of Kentucky and he had the Blue Grass Boys, it would be called 'bluegrass.' Traditional bluegrass emphasizes the traditional elements and form of the genre as laid out by Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys band in
7670-425: The borders of the United States and become an internationally appreciated art form. Bluegrass associations now exist worldwide. One such association, the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) was formed in 1985 and presents annual awards. In 2012, the critically acclaimed Dutch -language Belgian film, The Broken Circle Breakdown , featured Flemish musicians performing Bluegrass music central to
7788-624: The bus during the band's touring years, when breakdowns and maintenance issues were frequent, possibly because of the Montana altitude, irregular driving habits of band personnel, or simply the mileage the bus accumulated. The Mission Mountain Wood Band broke up in 1981 and members Quist, Robinson, Reichenberg, and Kurt Bergeron (who had replaced Johnson), formed Montana, also known as The Montana Band. They added members Mark Wittman and Jerry Zalnoski, and headquartered in Reno, Nevada . In this formation, they played concerts at various colleges, nightclubs, fairs and rodeos as well as frequent performances in
7906-521: The bus, a factor they credited to the success of their intense touring period. Band legend is that they would have traveled to all of the lower 48 had it not been for a cancelled concert in Maine that was never rebooked. Quist has stated that they put about two million miles on the vehicle. The bus was sold in an estate sale following the Montana Band plane crash, and later obtained by a collector in Great Falls, Montana who refurbished it and states that, as of 2014, it still ran. The same could not be said of
8024-534: The business elite lobbied for the establishment of Central Park , which in 1857 became the first landscaped park in an American city. The Great Irish Famine brought a large influx of Irish immigrants, of whom more than 200,000 were living in New York by 1860, representing over a quarter of the city's population. Extensive immigration from the German provinces meant that Germans comprised another 25% of New York's population by 1860. Democratic Party candidates were consistently elected to local office, increasing
8142-492: The charm". Other reviews were generally favorable, but commented that the album failed to capture the charisma of the band's live performances. As an inside joke, the band assigned the album a fake catalogue number of "OU812," and put the number on their tour bus, doing so a decade before Van Halen released an album with that name . The band traveled to 47 of the lower 48 states in a unique 1955 Greyhound Scenicruiser, identified as #472. Each member had his own private space on
8260-510: The city from New Jersey. The East River—a tidal strait —flows from Long Island Sound and separates the Bronx and Manhattan from Long Island. The Harlem River , another tidal strait between the East and Hudson rivers, separates most of Manhattan from the Bronx. The Bronx River , which flows through the Bronx and Westchester County , is the only entirely freshwater river in the city. The city's land has been altered substantially by human intervention, with considerable land reclamation along
8378-439: The city rapidly replaced Wuhan , China as the global epicenter of the pandemic during the early phase, straining the city's healthcare infrastructure. Through March 2023, New York City recorded more than 80,000 deaths from COVID-19-related complications. New York City is situated in the northeastern United States , in southeastern New York State, approximately halfway between Washington, D.C. and Boston . Its location at
8496-632: The city's economy. The advent of Y2K was celebrated with fanfare in Times Square . New York City suffered the bulk of the economic damage and largest loss of human life in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks . Two of the four airliners hijacked that day were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, resulting in the collapse of both buildings and the deaths of 2,753 people, including 343 first responders from
8614-794: The city's ties to the South and its dominant party. In 1861, Mayor Fernando Wood called on the aldermen to declare independence from Albany and the United States after the South seceded, but his proposal was not acted on. Anger at new military conscription laws during the American Civil War (1861–1865), which spared wealthier men who could afford to hire a substitute, led to the Draft Riots of 1863 , whose most visible participants were ethnic Irish working class. The draft riots deteriorated into attacks on New York's elite, followed by attacks on Black New Yorkers after fierce competition for
8732-633: The colony and allowed for religious freedom. In 1667, during negotiations leading to the Treaty of Breda after the Second Anglo-Dutch War , the victorious Dutch decided to keep the nascent plantation colony of what is now Suriname , which they had gained from the English, and in return the English kept New Amsterdam. The settlement was promptly renamed "New York" after the Duke of York (the future King James II and VII). The duke gave part of
8850-622: The colony to proprietors George Carteret and John Berkeley . On August 24, 1673, during the Third Anglo-Dutch War , Anthony Colve of the Dutch navy seized New York at the behest of Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest and rechristened it "New Orange" after William III , the Prince of Orange . The Dutch soon returned the island to England under the Treaty of Westminster of November 1674. Several intertribal wars among
8968-534: The crowd following a concert where they had played and crashed into a hillside. Ten fatalities resulted from the crash, including the band members, Tipton's 12 year old son, the pilot, and another passenger. It was the worst private plane crash in Montana history at the time. The crash was witnessed by a large number of people and widely reported. It was viewed as "the end of the innocence" for surviving band members and fans. Of their potential, those most familiar with
9086-460: The definitive sound and instrumental configuration that remains a model to this day. By some arguments, while the Blue Grass Boys were the only band playing this music, it was just their unique sound; it could not be considered a musical style until other bands began performing in a similar fashion. In 1967, the banjo instrumental " Foggy Mountain Breakdown " by Flatt and Scruggs was introduced to
9204-417: The development of large housing tracts in eastern Queens and Nassau County , with Wall Street leading America's place as the world's dominant economic power. The United Nations headquarters was completed in 1952, solidifying New York's global geopolitical influence, and the rise of abstract expressionism in the city precipitated New York's displacement of Paris as the center of the art world. In 1969,
9322-549: The direction of the style. Radio stations dedicated to bluegrass have also proved influential in advancing the evolution of the style into distinctive subgenres. Bluegrass was initially included in the category of folk music and later changed to hillbilly . In 1948, bluegrass was placed under the country and western heading for radio airplay charting. All four of the seminal bluegrass authors - Artis, Price, Cantwell, and Rosenberg - described bluegrass music in detail as originating in style and form, in one form or another, between
9440-406: The end of 1790, the national capital was moved to Philadelphia . During the 19th century, New York City's population grew from 60,000 to 3.43 million. Under New York State's gradual emancipation act of 1799, children of slave mothers were to be eventually liberated but to be held in indentured servitude until their mid-to-late twenties. Together with slaves freed by their masters after
9558-659: The exposure traditional bluegrass received alongside mainstream country music on radio and televised programs such as the Grand Ole Opry , a wave of young and not exclusively Southern musicians began replicating the genre's format on college campuses and in coffeehouses amidst the American folk music revival of the early 1960s. These artists often incorporated songs, elements and instruments from other popular genres, particularly rock and roll. Banjoist Earl Scruggs of Flatt and Scruggs had shown progressive tendencies since
9676-457: The founding of a Dutch fur trading settlement on Governors Island . In 1625, construction was started on a citadel and Fort Amsterdam , later called Nieuw Amsterdam (New Amsterdam), on present-day Manhattan Island. The colony of New Amsterdam extended from the southern tip of Manhattan to modern-day Wall Street , where a 12-foot (3.7 m) wooden stockade was built in 1653 to protect against Native American and English raids. In 1626,
9794-577: The group said they had been "only a step away from the main showrooms and from the big-time with groups like Alabama and the Oak Ridge Boys ". In 1992 the four surviving members of the original M2WB lineup reunited for a concert in Polson, Montana , with Terry Robinson's brother Bruce Robinson filling in the fifth spot. Additional successful "reunion" concerts followed over the years, becoming more frequent as time passed, with Tim Ryan also filling
9912-401: The group's breakup in 1969. New Grass Revival began utilizing electric instrumentation alongside songs imported from other genres to great popularity in the 1970s and 1980s, and the term "newgrass" became synonymous with "progressive bluegrass". It continued to evolve though the '80s and '90s, moving closer to folk and rock in some quarters and closer to jazz in others, while festivals such as
10030-432: The group's earliest days, incorporating jazz-inspired banjo and bass duets and complex chord progressions that extended the genre's original rigid, conservative structure. In the late 1960s, Scruggs experimented on duets with saxophonist King Curtis and added songs by the likes of counterculture icon Bob Dylan to the group's repertoire, while bandmate Lester Flatt , a traditionalist , opposed these changes, resulting in
10148-522: The hardscrabble existence of living in Appalachia and other rural areas with modest financial resources. Some protest music has been composed in the bluegrass style, especially concerning the vicissitudes of the Appalachian coal mining industry . Railroading has also been a popular theme, with ballads such as " Wreck of the Old 97 " and "Nine Pound Hammer" (from the legend of John Henry ). Bluegrass as
10266-480: The high baritone above Ralph Stanley's tenor, both parts above Carter's lead vocal. This trio vocal arrangement was variously used by other groups as well; even Bill Monroe employed it in his 1950 recording of "When the Golden Leaves Begin to Fall'. In the 1960s, Flatt and Scruggs often added a fifth part to the traditional quartet parts on gospel songs, the extra part being a high baritone (doubling
10384-473: The ice (and its subsequent retreat) contributed to the separation of what is now Long Island and Staten Island. That action left bedrock at a relatively shallow depth, providing a solid foundation for most of Manhattan's skyscrapers. The Hudson River flows through the Hudson Valley into New York Bay . Between New York City and Troy, New York , the river is an estuary . The Hudson River separates
10502-563: The iconic banjo to Appalachia. Much later, in 1945, Earl Scruggs would develop a three-finger roll on the instrument which allowed a rapid-fire cascade of notes that could keep up with the driving tempo of the new bluegrass sound. Settlers from Britain and Ireland arrived in Appalachia during the 18th century and brought with them the musical traditions of their homelands. These traditions consisted primarily of English and Scottish ballads —which were essentially unaccompanied narrative—and dance music, such as reels , which were accompanied by
10620-554: The last American stronghold in Manhattan, causing George Washington and his forces to retreat across the Hudson River to New Jersey , pursued by British forces. After the battle, in which the Americans were defeated, the British made the city their military and political base of operations in North America. The city was a haven for Loyalist refugees and escaped slaves who joined the British lines for freedom promised by
10738-475: The late 1940s. Traditional bluegrass musicians play folk songs, tunes with simple traditional chord progressions, exclusively on acoustic instruments , though it is common practice to amplify acoustic instruments during stage performances before larger audiences. In most traditional bluegrass bands, the guitar rarely takes the lead, instead acting as a rhythm instrument, one notable exception being gospel-based songs . Melodies and lyrics tend to be simple, often in
10856-491: The lower 48 states in a unique 1955 Greyhound Scenicruiser , performing up to 320 times a year both solo and as an opening act for other bands. The original five members were Rob Quist , Steve Riddle, Christian Johnson, Greg Reichenberg, and the late Terry Robinson, all of whom were UM students and born in Montana. Johnson was replaced with Kurt Bergeron after the band released their first album, In Without Knocking , in 1977. The band recorded two studio albums in their heyday,
10974-469: The most popular song on the album at the time and became something of a party anthem. Their own composition, "Mountain Standard Time" is now better known, and "Sweet Maria" has proved to be the nostalgic favorite of the band members themselves. All three remain staples of their set list. Billboard Magazine reviewed the album, commenting that some songs were "a trifle old-fashioned, but that's part of
11092-419: The most populous urbanized area in the world in the early 1920s, overtaking London . The metropolitan area surpassed 10 million in the early 1930s, becoming the first megacity . The Great Depression saw the election of reformer Fiorello La Guardia as mayor and the fall of Tammany Hall after eighty years of political dominance. Returning World War II veterans created a post-war economic boom and
11210-616: The mouth of the Hudson River , which feeds into a naturally sheltered harbor and then into the Atlantic Ocean , has helped the city grow in significance as a trading port. Most of the city is built on the three islands of Long Island, Manhattan, and Staten Island. During the Wisconsin glaciation , 75,000 to 11,000 years ago, the New York City area was situated at the edge of a large ice sheet . The erosive forward movement of
11328-496: The only " transgender folks around" during the June 1969 Stonewall riots. The transgender community in New York City played a significant role in fighting for LGBT equality. In the 1970s, job losses due to industrial restructuring caused New York City to suffer from economic problems and rising crime rates. Growing fiscal deficits in 1975 led the city to appeal to the federal government for financial aid; President Gerald Ford gave
11446-418: The ordering and layering of vocal harmony is called the "stack". A standard stack has a baritone voice at the bottom, the lead in the middle (singing the main melody) and a tenor at the top, although stacks can be altered, especially where a female voice is included. Alison Krauss and Union Station provide a good example of a different harmony stack with a baritone and tenor with a high lead, an octave above
11564-405: The previous bass note). Notes are anticipated, in contrast to laid-back blues where notes are behind the beat; this creates the higher energy characteristic of bluegrass. In bluegrass, as in most forms of jazz, one or more instrumentalists take a turn playing the melody and improvising around it, while the others perform accompaniment ; this is especially typified in tunes called breakdowns . This
11682-518: The same time, several popular indie folk and folk rock bands such as the Avett Brothers , Mumford & Sons and Trampled by Turtles have incorporated rhythmic elements and instrumentation from the bluegrass tradition into their popular music arrangements, as has the Branson -based band The Petersens . While originating in the United States, Bluegrass as a genre has expanded beyond
11800-515: The sound and structure of traditional bluegrass, a trend that has been dubbed neo-traditional bluegrass. The group The Country Gentlemen is credited with starting the progressive bluegrass movement with their 1960 album Country Songs, Old and New , combining traditional ballads such as "The Little Sparrow," "Weeping Willow" and "Ellen Smith" with traditional bluegrass instrumentation and "bouncy" mandolin and banjo parts distinct from those of traditional players such as Monroe and Scruggs. Due to
11918-399: The spot left by Terry Robinson. Band members also organized a 2012 tribute concert to the Montana band. M2WB now plays semi-regular performances, including some out-of-state in locations such as Lake Tahoe . In 2005 they released their entire recorded output in a box set entitled Private Stash , which included music, DVD recordings of performances, and cover art by Monte Dolack . The band was
12036-524: The standard melody line, sung by the female vocalist. However, by employing variants to the standard trio vocal arrangement, they were simply following a pattern existing since the early days of the genre. Both the Stanley Brothers and the Osborne Brothers employed the use of a high lead with the tenor and baritone below it. The Stanleys used this technique numerous times in their recordings for both Mercury and King records. This particular stack
12154-690: The story. International bluegrass groups include Hayde Bluegrass Orchestra and Ila Auto from Norway ; Rautakoura and Steve 'n' Seagulls from Finland ; Druhá Tráva and Poutníci from the Czech Republic (home of the subgenre, Czech bluegrass ); Hutong Yellow Weasels and The Randy Abel Stable from China ; Heartbreak Hill and Foggy Hogtown Boys from Canada ; the U.K. 's The Beef Seeds , Southern Tenant Folk Union , and Police Dog Hogan ; and Australia 's Flying Emus , Mustered Courage , and Rank Strangers . New York City New York , often called New York City or NYC ,
12272-765: The subject of a 2009 PBS documentary, "Never Long Gone: The Mission Mountain Wood Band Story." That year, they also opened for John Fogerty at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally . The band added singer and songwriter Tim Ryan to the group to fill the position once held by Robinson. They released a new studio album called Reboot in 2011 with a tour in support, and in 2014 a second new album, Now and Then. Though all members continue to play music, only Johnson, Ryan and Quist individually continue to work full time as musicians, Quist with Great Northern and later with his adult children Guthrie and Halladay in
12390-405: The time such as Alabama and the Oak Ridge Boys . After the departure of Quist, Terry Robinson was the only remaining original band member when a plane crash killed all then-members of The Montana Band in 1987. The surviving M2WB members reunited in 1992 and began to play periodic reunion concerts from that time forward, released a compilation of their work in 2005, and after adding new members to
12508-469: The time such as Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young . Band members also credit the influence of Jonathan Edwards . A 1974 fundraiser performance helped propel a then-young politician, Max Baucus , to victory in his first race for the United States House of Representatives . Baucus later returned the favor when as a U.S. Senator , he introduced the band (sitting in the balcony) from the floor of
12626-475: The tune that accompanies the Scottish ballad " Bonnie George Campbell ". The music now known as bluegrass was frequently used to accompany a rural dancing style known as buckdancing , flatfooting , or clogging . As the bluegrass sound spread to urban areas, listening to it for its own sake increased, especially after the advent of audio recording . In 1948, what would come to be known as bluegrass emerged as
12744-529: The world by pinnacle height, with its spire reaching a symbolic 1,776 feet (541.3 m), a reference to the year of U.S. independence . The Occupy Wall Street protests in Zuccotti Park in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan began on September 17, 2011, receiving global attention and popularizing the Occupy movement against social and economic inequality worldwide. New York City
12862-513: The world. In 1664, New York was named in honor of the Duke of York (later King James II of England ). James's elder brother, King Charles II , appointed the Duke as proprietor of the former territory of New Netherland , including the city of New Amsterdam , when the Kingdom of England seized it from Dutch control. In the pre-Columbian era , the area of present-day New York City
12980-422: Was Juan Rodriguez , a merchant from Santo Domingo who arrived in Manhattan during the winter of 1613–14, trapping for pelts and trading with the local population as a representative of the Dutch colonists. A permanent European presence near New York Harbor was established in 1624, making New York the 12th-oldest continuously occupied European-established settlement in the continental United States , with
13098-566: Was heavily affected by Hurricane Sandy in late October 2012. Sandy's impacts included flooding that led to the days-long shutdown of the subway system and flooding of all East River subway tunnels and of all road tunnels entering Manhattan except the Lincoln Tunnel . The New York Stock Exchange closed for two days due to weather for the first time since the Great Blizzard of 1888 . At least 43 people died in New York City as
13216-539: Was a prime destination in the early 20th century for Blacks during the Great Migration from the American South, and by 1916, New York City had the largest urban African diaspora in North America. The Harlem Renaissance of literary and cultural life flourished during the era of Prohibition . The larger economic boom generated construction of skyscrapers competing in height. New York City became
13334-862: Was founded. The Stamp Act Congress met in New York in October 1765, as the Sons of Liberty organization emerged in the city and skirmished over the next ten years with British troops stationed there. The Battle of Long Island , the largest battle of the American Revolutionary War , was fought in August 1776 within modern-day Brooklyn. A British rout of the Continental Army at the Battle of Fort Washington in November 1776 eliminated
13452-604: Was in 1987. The topical and narrative themes of many bluegrass songs are highly reminiscent of folk music. Many songs that are widely considered to be bluegrass are in reality older works legitimately classified as folk or old-time music that are performed in the bluegrass style. The interplay between bluegrass and folk forms has been academically studied. Folklorist Neil Rosenberg, for example, shows that most devoted bluegrass fans and musicians are familiar with traditional folk songs and old-time music and that these songs are often played at shows, festivals, and jams . "Bluegrass"
13570-534: Was inhabited by Algonquians , including the Lenape . Their homeland, known as Lenapehoking , included the present-day areas of Staten Island , Manhattan , the Bronx , the western portion of Long Island (including Brooklyn and Queens ), and the Lower Hudson Valley . The first documented visit into New York Harbor by a European was in 1524 by explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano . He claimed
13688-407: Was known to experiment with instrumentation; he once even used a string orchestra, choir, and pre-recorded bird-song track. Apart from specific instrumentation, a distinguishing characteristic of bluegrass is vocal harmony featuring two, three, or four parts, often with a dissonant or modal sound in the highest voice (see modal frame ), a style described as the "high, lonesome sound." Commonly,
13806-682: Was most famously employed by the Osborne Brothers who first employed it during their time with MGM records in the latter half of the 1950s. This vocal arrangement would become the trademark of the Osbornes' sound with Bobby's high, clear voice at the top of the vocal stack. Additionally, the Stanley Brothers also utilized a high baritone part on several of their trios recorded for Columbia records during their time with that label (1949–1952). Mandolin player Pee Wee Lambert sang
13924-468: Was named New Amsterdam in 1626 and was chartered as a city in 1653. The city came under English control in 1664 and was temporarily renamed New York after King Charles II granted the lands to his brother, the Duke of York , before being permanently renamed New York in November 1674. New York City was the U.S. capital from 1785 until 1790. The modern city was formed by the 1898 consolidation of its five boroughs : Manhattan , Brooklyn , Queens ,
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